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Dawn Hinsley (What's On editor and Salisbury FC fan)

Nothing in football has ever shocked me more (apart from the Hand of God, my first ever footballing memory) than seeing Germany not only go out of the World Cup in the group stage, but at the bottom of their group and in the manner in which their final game unfolded. I never believed for one second before the tournament that was even a possibility.

But once I saw France play Argentina, I really did feel there was something in their play that made them stand out - a little magic and creativity.

As far as England is concerned, what an exceptional tournament. I predicted they'd reach the quarters but actually had a private bet at work with someone that they would go all the way to the semis.

Mo Salah

I was a bit cowardly in hindsight, not wanting to give that prediction on the panel – I wish I had just said what I believed because they did it and, boy, did they make us all feel proud. What a buzz. What a tremendous few weeks of anticipation and excitement. Thank you, England.

Finally, my prediction for stand out player, Mo Salah, didn't really get a chance to shine. Looking back, a few players stood out for all the wrong reasons (Neymar definitely has a career on the stage after his footballing days are done).

But for all the right reasons, I'm going to say I will remember the performance of Harry Maguire for a long time to come.

Harry Maguire celebrates his goal against Sweden

Adam Moss (digital editor and Leicester City fan)

With hindsight, two of my predictions now look slightly embarrassing to say the least.

This World Cup was more open than any I can remember and did provide a fair few shocks - and arguably the biggest one of those was Germany's performance.

I tipped them to lift the trophy from the outset, mainly because they've been so hugely consistent over so many World Cups and European Championships.

And it did seem that after the unexpected loss against Mexico, Germany's tournament got underway in the second group game with the last-gasp winner against Sweden, but who could have ever predicted that 2-0 defeat to South Korea?

It just goes to show that a major tournament can go wrong for any team. Spain and Argentina, who would have also been highly fancied before the tournament, didn't live up to expectations either. Even the mighty Brazil didn't really set the tournament alight, and Italy and Holland didn't even qualify.

All England fans should take note - it's not just the Three Lions who have a history of under-performing - we just tend to forget about it more quickly when it happens to another nation!

Ashley Young and Jesse Lingard after the defeat to Croatia (Image: Adam Davy/PA Wire)

Which brings me to England's performance.

Overall, I was delighted. I predicted we'd struggle to get out of the group, and would reach the quarter-finals at best, so to reach the semis definitely exceeded my expectations (and let's face it, probably everyone else's too!). The draw might have opened up for England in a way that no one could have predicted at the start of the tournament, but that doesn't take anything away from the team.

England had a defined system of play, every player knew their job and were well organised, which is something we haven't always had in previous competitions.

I was also incredibly impressed by the attitude of the players. They looked relaxed and like they were actually enjoying being part of the camp and playing. For me, that was the major difference at this World Cup and the reason we got so far - not because the draw was 'easy'.

Which brings me to Gareth Southgate, who as an interim manager when he was appointed probably had a few people questioning his managerial experience and credentials before the tournament.

But that's certainly not the case anymore and ‘St Gareth’ now looks like he'll be leading England through the next two tournaments at least - and deservedly so.

Looking forward to Euro 2020, it's important that England fans don't raise our expectations too high. If this World Cup has taught us anything, it's that anything can happen in a knockout tournament.

It's also an inescapable fact that 31 of the 32 teams who take part in the World Cup go home disappointed, so the best any of us can realistically hope for is that our team performs well and gives the nation something to cheer.

After so many recent disappointments, I was overjoyed to see the England team do just that. Yes, we may have missed out on a spot at the final, but we should all be proud of the team's performance rather than dwell on what might have been.

Finally, in my own defence, I did have one prediction that wasn't too wide of the mark. I picked Kevin de Bruyne as player of the tournament. Luka Modric may have won the Golden Ball and it’s hard to argue with that, but de Bruyne definitely made his mark on Russia 2018 and managed to replicate his club form for his country.

Though with one 'half right' prediction out of three, I doubt anyone will be wanting to employ me as a football pundit any time soon!

Robert Rowlands (news editor and Manchester United fan)

I said Brazil, which I don't think was a bad prediction. They have a good team, but for most of the tournament didn't really play with the flair and dynamism we expected them to.

And Belgium's counter-attack just made them look tactically amateurish. I did think France could go far, but they've shown a robustness and level of game management that I haven't seen from them before.

As for England, I, like most people, got this wrong. I couldn't see the evidence for England going far because it wasn't there in their recent past. But they've been terrific, with Trippier the best full-back in the tournament, Kane the Golden Boot winner, Henderson very impressive in the middle and Maguire a sensation (although an occasionally wobbly one) at the back.

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The true star, though, was Southgate - he managed expectations and performed with poise, calm and intelligence. He should now be given the job for years - and become this nation's Joachim Low. Inadvertently, the FA have appointed a star.

As for the tournament’s star player, I thought Coutinho might do well, and he did, but stars go deep into the tournament. On that basis, you'd have to say the star was probably Mbappe, although in a cautious, counter-attacking side, he was only given occasional chances to show us what he can do.

Pogba and Varane were also very good for France, and Modric, Perisic, de Bruyne, Hazard and Trippier all played very well.